Expert-system method for automatic reconfiguration for restoration of shipboard power systems

The electric-power systems in US Navy ships supply energy to sophisticated systems for weapons, communications, navigation and operation. Faults in a shipboard power system (SPS) may occur owing to material casualties of electrical components or widespread faults owing to battle damage. These faults may interrupt the supply of electrical energy to loads that are not faulty or damaged. To enhance survivability of naval ships and meet reduced manning requirements, automatic reconfiguration for service restoration may be performed to restore the de-energised loads. The paper presents an automatic rule-based expert-system method for reconfiguration of electric-power systems on naval ships which determines the control operations necessary to restore power supply to de-energised loads after battle damage or cascading faults. A case study is presented to illustrate the effectiveness of the proposed method.